Cherry Creek Reservoir
Cherry Creek Reservoir is managed by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers / Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Lake Insights displays its latest available elevation from USACE NWO District. Published reference elevations are listed below.
Lake Status
3.84 feet below full pool
−3.84 ft vs full pool
- 7-day trend
- Stable
- 7-day change
- Up 0.03 ft
- 30-day change
- Up 0.03 ft
- Last updated
- 53 minutes ago
Cherry Creek Reservoir is currently 3.84 feet below full pool and has remained relatively stable over the past seven days. Cherry Creek Reservoir remains below full pool but has been relatively stable during the past month.
Watershed drought conditions
Arapahoe County, CO · surrounding county from lake location
No Drought
No official drought conditions.
Severity
Weekly trend
Stable
Compared with last week
Official drought
Yes
48.5% of the watershed is currently classified as official drought (D1+).
U.S. Drought Monitor · map date Sep 8, 2026. Updated weekly. droughtmonitor.unl.eduView drought map for Arapahoe County, CO
Key Facts
Managing authority
Waterbody / project type
Official purposes
Full pool
Datum
Current-level source
Project / NID identifier
Dam / watershed (NID design values)
Static design values from a confidently matched National Inventory of Dams record — not live gage readings.
- Normal storage
- 13,960 acre-ft
- Max storage
- 134,470 acre-ft
- Surface area at normal pool
- 852 acres
- Drainage area
- 385 sq mi
- Spillway capacity (design)
- 28,600 cfs
- Dam structure
- Earth · 189 ft high · completed 1953
- Hazard classification
- High
- Safety & inspection
- last inspection Mar 24, 2025 · EAP yes
National Inventory of Dams · matched record: Cherry Creek Dam (CO01280)
How this lake is operated
- Documented project purposes (National Inventory of Dams): Flood Risk Reduction, Recreation.
Why the level can change
General factors for reservoirs like this
These are common influences for this type of lake. They do not identify the cause of a specific current change unless an operator update confirms it.
Rainfall & inflows
Rain and upstream river inflows can raise reservoir levels, especially after storms.
Downstream releases
When an operator releases water through a dam, reservoir storage can fall and downstream flows can rise.
Flood-risk operations
Some projects store or release water under flood-risk rules when conditions require it.
Water supply
Some reservoirs support municipal, industrial, irrigation, or regional water-supply needs.
Hydropower
Hydropower projects may pass water through turbines when generating electricity.
Seasonal weather
Dry periods, heat, evaporation, and seasonal rainfall patterns can affect storage over weeks and months.
Published reference elevations
- Full pool
- 5550.00 ft
Published reference elevation. Not necessarily a fixed year-round target for every project.
Current data source
Managing authority: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers / Colorado Parks and Wildlife
Observation source used by Lake Insights: USACE NWO District
Who manages the lake and who publishes the reading Lake Insights displays can differ. Lake Insights does not invent a source label from the managing authority alone.
General education
Shared background — not lake-specific facts
Lake Insights aggregates water level information from authoritative public sources such as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, NOAA, TVA, Bureau of Reclamation, power utilities, and other official lake operators. We preserve historical observations, calculate trends, and present lake conditions in a consistent format. For USACE NWO District, we link to the official source whenever it is available. Lake Insights does not predict future lake levels unless an official forecast has been published by the managing authority.
Common questions about Cherry Creek Reservoir
- Who manages Cherry Creek Reservoir?
- Cherry Creek Reservoir is managed by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers / Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Lake Insights reports published gauge readings; it does not operate the waterbody.
- What is full pool at Cherry Creek Reservoir?
- The published full-pool elevation for Cherry Creek Reservoir is 5550.00 ft (NGVD29). Full pool is a published reference elevation — not a prediction of today’s level.
- Where does Lake Insights get the level reading for Cherry Creek Reservoir?
- Lake Insights displays the latest available elevation for Cherry Creek Reservoir from USACE NWO District. The managing authority (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers / Colorado Parks and Wildlife) may differ from the agency that publishes the observation used on this page.
- What datum is used for Cherry Creek Reservoir?
- Elevations for Cherry Creek Reservoir are referenced to NGVD29 (MSL).
- What are the documented purposes of Cherry Creek Reservoir?
- Documented purposes for Cherry Creek Reservoir (National Inventory of Dams): Flood Risk Reduction, Recreation.